Friday, May 09, 2008

When the whole town knows your kink

I read this story this morning. Thought about it. Decided not to post it. Then the Mayor wrote me about it, "John didn't know if I should bother you with this, but I knew you'd want to know".I like how JK Rowling writes how whenever Muggles feel irrational despair, the Dementors are nearby. I have not felt right the last 24 hours, but I have every reason to be in good spirits. Maybe this is the reason.I did not know Irina Yarmolenko was from Carrboro, and I have selfish reasons for posting this. I want to know how she died. Someone please tell me the Mount Holly Police aren't handling this on their own.The Charlotte ObserverFor two hours Thursday night, an extended UNC Charlotte family stood in a semicircle, telling stories about Irina "Ira" Yarmolenko who grew up in Chapel Hill. The Ira (pronounced EE-ra) who left sticky notes with funny messages on sinks and above toilets to brighten her roommates' day. The Ira who spent half an hour in a cardboard "gingerbread" house built for kids, making statues out of Play-Doh.

The Ira who spent Sunday mornings sipping coffee and talking about how she would change the world.

The 20-year-old died on Monday in what police now say is a homicide. She died of asphyxiation, her body discovered next to her car on the banks of the Catawba River, Mount Holly Police said Thursday.

They named no suspects and have no motive. Investigators are trying to figure out what happened between 10:50 a.m., when Yarmolenko was last seen at her job at a coffee shop near UNCC, and 1:18 p.m., when a woman riding a personal watercraft reported finding her body.

In a news conference Thursday, Mount Holly Police Chief David Belk wouldn't reveal whether Yarmolenko had been strangled or smothered, saying only that she died from a lack of oxygen. Belk also wouldn't say whether police had found marks or wounds on her body.It is the latest in a string of high-profile killings of N.C. college students this year. They include the slaying of UNC Chapel Hill Student Body President Eve Carson and Duke University graduate student Abhijit Mahato. On Feb. 1, police believe a UNCC student, Simrit Gill, was killed in a domestic violence homicide.

Why someone would kill Yarmolenko, a bubbly college sophomore, continued to puzzle investigators and the more than 300 people gathered around UNCC's Belk Tower Thursday."Ira, you can't describe in words," her cousin, Natasha Deyneka, of Raleigh, told the crowd. "She was selfless and pure and amazing, and you can only describe her with superlatives. Any of you, if you had a bad day, she would be there with a bouquet of flowers and a hug for you."Authorities said Yarmolenko didn't appear to have a reason to drive to Mount Holly, where her body and blue Saturn sedan were found. The car appeared to have traveled about a half mile past the Stowe Family YMCA and down a steep embankment, where it struck a tree stump.

Yarmolenko was found outside the car, wearing a hooded sweatshirt, black skirt and athletic shoes, Belk said. In the hours before her death, she'd been at a credit union and then at the coffee shop.

Belk said police had "some strong leads," but didn't go into detail about them. He said his department would let the public know if there was a suspect description, but stressed that "there's nothing to indicate there's someone out there that's stalking or chasing people."Hours later, at the memorial, Yarmolenko's brother, Pavel, had different messages for people who'd been touched by his sister's murder.

"The person who killed my sister, he's in some ways a byproduct of the system that we live in, and we have to change it. You all have to make a difference now," he said. "I hope when you go home tonight, that you will tell everyone you love them. Because I didn't get a chance at all. I didn't get a chance to tell my sister that I loved her."

Anyone with information should call Mount Holly Police at 704-827-4343.

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Pavel's message. That's not uncommon. That's the first thing Pierre told me to do after his second daughter died. Tell them you love them. I do it about 4 -5 times a day; they're getting a little unsettled by it. Oh well...

5 Comments:

Thanks for that important story, John. And don't worry about the eye rolling and weird looks your daugthers give you when you tell them how you feel...you should see some of the looks on my boys' faces, but that isn't going to change a thing...it was good advice from your friend, Pierre.